The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-10-09

Henry Murray, once a policeman, gives
preference to the word of policeman now
when compared with that of a civilian He
has high and extremely erroneous idea of
the powers of the police and the Police JUS
tees. Some time ago park policeman ar
raigned a espectable-looking young man
before him. The officer charged his prisoner
with assault. He said he was going into the
park with young girl not over 10 years
old, at 8 o'clock at night. He suspected
him of some evil purpose and asked the
young woman how old she was. There
upon, he alleged, the prisoner set upon him
suddenly, threw him into the bushes and
beat him With the usual discipline that
controls the park police, another officer who,
if was afterward shown, had been in the
police station at the time, corroborated the
above statement.
The prisoner was not person to be so
easily cowed down, however. By several
respectable witnesses he proved that the po-
liceman had assaulted him without cause
before he turned around, and gave him,
what he had not expected, thrashng The
policeman had also insulted the young WON
an, who produced her marriage certificate
showing that she was the wife of the pris-
oner and 20 years of age. Nevertheless, to
the surprise of everybody, including the
policeman, who had begun to get fright
| ened, Justice Murray, in his wisdom, placed
| credence in the story of the officers and re-
manded the indignant young husband back
to prison, to languish there until his trial
came on or he was fortunate enough TO Sc
cure bail.
| 1t is not probable that Murray ever inten-
| tionally made q wrong decision, but, like
| most ignorant men, he has great opinion
of his own cleverness, and usually trips up
on it. Unfortunately, he has not the can
dor to own up to mistake, even though
convinced of it, and obStinately glories in
his blunders He is universally known as
the woman lover, not that he shows any
liking for any of the women who come be
fore him, for he is a model husband and
father, but he has the idea that women are
always in the right and that men are always
the brutes indignant women proclaim them
to be. However probable mans evidence
may be, therefore, the woman's is always
given precedence by Justice Murray. While
on general principles this may be very
chlvalrous and romantic, it does not work
very well in police court. Murray likes to
be considered polite and gentlemanly, and
well dressed men, who appear to be influen-
tial and respectable, can easily obtain an
audience from him. With the ordinary
rough element that frequent the police
courts he is very severe and sometimes ex-
presses his condemnation in harsh Ian
guage.
are O'Reilly and German. The former
would make model appearance as the pro
prietor of a corner GROCERY. Both base
their decisions on their feelings, with great
disregard for the law, and are exceedingly
impressed with a sense of their shrewdneSs
and perspicuity. Nothing pleases O'Reilly
more than to squelch some police court shys-
ter lawyer, right or wrong. In a case
where the prisoner had been carver in the
Murray Hill Hotel and was charged with
using his knife on a companion, causing
death, O'Reilly refused to allow the prisoners
counsel to ask the most ordinary questions
of witnesses. He construed the law govern
ing such examinations with so much obvious
error that Assistant District Attorney
Parish, who was present at the time, felt
constrained to interfere. The Justice finally
refused to notice even this interference, and
in a high-handed manner restricted the
counseps cross-examination of witnesses to
fifteen minutes. The counsel refused to be
bound by any such condition and requested
an adjournment.
You've got to do it," shouted O'Reilly.
''I'l make you do it."